Breeders Cup 2012 Championships Day One Results and Recap

I meant to do this in my 2012 Breeder’s Cup Preview column, and I apologize sincerely for this being a little late. My heart and soul has been ripped out. I am a native of the great state of New Jersey. I lived there for 30 years before moving to my current city of residence in Lexington, KY in August of 1998. I am absolutely heartbroken to see my home state, and it’s residents ripped apart by Super storm Sandy. This also applies to those affected in the great state of New York, and other states in the Northeast, including Canada.

I have family and friends back in New Jersey and New York who have been affected by Sandy as well.

I donated to the Red Cross on my cell phone. I know times are tough in this economy, but these people who are suffering, and may not have power for weeks are our fellow Americans. Please give to the Red Cross, or the Salvation Army to help anyway that you can. To see people without their homes, and without heat, water, etc. is so sad.

During that Concert for Sandy featuring Jon Bon Jovi and Springsteen, NBC focused on this sweet lady in Staten Island who lost her home that she and her husband lived in for 30 years. The house was GONE. The woman was beside herself. My heart went out to her. I ask that if my readers can just do want you can to help those on the East Coast, it would be awesome. Everyone over on the East coast is in my thoughts and prayers.

That being said, let’s examine the action at the Breeder’s Cup.

Well, on November 2, 2012, the first day of the Breeder’s Cup was off and running at the glorious Santa Anita racetrack. It was a really beautiful day for the races. The horses looked absolutely stunning. People watching looked like they were having fun, and it looked like a great atmosphere for such a great event.

This blog is going to have a bit of an ESPN twist. Instead of analyzing every race, I am going to just list the winners, and then below that, pull a “Mike and Mike In The Morning,” and do a “Good, Bad, and Ugly” section. The last section will be my favorite, “C’Mon Man.”

This should be fun, so here we go. I am going to abbreviate Breeder’s Cup as “BC.”

Of course, I whiffed on all of them. I admit it. I just swung and missed. Several of my picks did hit the board (getting up for second and/or third) in various races. I don’t bet. It is not due to religious reason. It is due to my hatred of losing money I don’t have, and I just love the sport for the sport’s sake. It’s the best sport in the world to me.

Now, without further ado, I will review the first day of the 2012 Breeder’s Cup by giving my readers the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. I will end it with a “C’Mon Man.”

The Good:

Hall of Fame trainer D. Wayne Lukas won his 19th Breeder’s Cup race with the huge upset victory in the first Breeder’s Cup race of the day when Hightail, a maiden (horse that had never won a race), edged out Merit Man, the favorite.

It was good to see D. Wayne Lukas in the winner’s circle in a major race. It’s been some time since I have seen him win a huge race. I remember in the 80s-90s when either Lukas, Bob Baffert, and Nick Zito would be training the top dogs of the sport.

Royal Delta wires (leads all the way) the star-ladened field in the Ladies Classic.

This race lived up to its billing. Totally awesome race. I was a little stunned that Royal Delta went to the front. It is not her style, but it worked. She held off the hard charging My Miss Aurelia, who finished second. Royal Delta has now won the Ladies Classic back to back.

Calidoscopio won the Breeder’s Cup Marathon for his home country of Argentina. I thought it was really awesome to see a horse from another country other than the United States, or from Europe winning at the Breeder’s Cup. It really sends a message that the event is an international phenomenon.

On a side note, there have been Breeder’s Cup winners from Canada, and South America, but as much as from Europe or the United States.

The Bad:

In a few of the races, there were some bad rides where the jockeys had their horses pinned at the rail for such a long time that when it was time to make their move, the horse had nowhere to run. One such example was the Fugue in the 1 1/4 Mile Filly and Mare Turf. She and Marketing Mix were the two heavy favorites. Throughout the race, the Fugue was pinned down along the inside. Just awful riding.

The coverage by NBC of the Breeder’s Cup needs some help. First of all, a lot of the coverage is on the NBC Sports channel which is part of a cable package which if you have cable, I am guessing you would have to buy a separate sports package. There are people out there who can’t afford it, and can’t afford cable. It was so much better when ABC had it on during the day. Times change.

Second of all, I get tired of the video packages, and the fluff pieces. I would have liked it if we could have seen the horses in the paddock more.

In speaking of fluff pieces, please, no more videos of I’ll Have Another’s withdrawal from the Belmont, as I am sure that I am not the only one who is tired of seeing that piece.

The Ugly:

There were no catastrophic injuries in the Breeder’s Cup, but two horses did not finish the Marathon.

In the Ladies Classic, Questing, one of the main contenders, dropped out of the race quickly, and was pulled up. She walked into the horse ambulance. It is my understanding that she is fine as confirmed by the track vet.

It was later revealed by her trainer Kiaran McLaughlin that she suffered a swollen left eye on the following day’s broadcast.

C’MON MAN of Day One of the Breeder’s Cup goes to:

The stewards put up an inquiry sign on the winner of the Juvenile Sprint, Hightail. Why? Hightail and second place finisher Merit Man grazed each other. They showed the replay, and I said, “Really?” The stewards discovered that Merit Man initiated the slight contact. The finish stood.

I felt that was a waste of time. I mean, seriously. It was a slight bump. No reason for an inquiry.

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